The last few decades have witnessed unprecedented convergence between humans and
machines that closely operate around the human body. Despite these advances, traditional …

Mechanical properties of extracellular matrices (ECMs) regulate essential cell behaviours,
including differentiation, migration and proliferation, through mechanotransduction. Studies …

Tissue engineering is a promising and revolutionary strategy to treat patients who suffer the
loss or failure of an organ or tissue, with the aim to restore the dysfunctional tissues and …

Hydrogels are polymer networks infiltrated with water. Many biological hydrogels in animal
bodies such as muscles, heart valves, cartilages, and tendons possess extreme mechanical …

Polymer materials provide solutions to some of the most pressing environmental,
manufacturing and health-care challenges. Traditional thermoplastic and thermoset …

Polymeric tissue adhesives provide versatile materials for wound management and are
widely used in a variety of medical settings ranging from minor to life-threatening tissue …

Substantial research over the past two decades has established that extracellular matrix
(ECM) elasticity, or stiffness, affects fundamental cellular processes, including spreading …

Owing to their unique chemical and physical properties, hydrogels are attracting increasing
attention in both basic and translational biomedical studies. Although the classical hydrogels …

Load-bearing tissues, such as muscle and cartilage, exhibit high elasticity, high toughness
and fast recovery, but have different stiffness (with cartilage being significantly stiffer than …

Carbohydrates are the most abundant and one of the most important biomacromolecules in
Nature. Except for energy-related compounds, carbohydrates can be roughly divided into …